Zami tightened his grip on the Wailing Dread shard and the Bone Monarch shard**, their faint pulses beating in rhythm with his own heart. The sea of wandering souls and masses of agony pressed toward him, their distorted forms moving with agonizing slowness, yet with an inevitability that made escape impossible. Their moaning cries reverberated through the air, heavy with despair, each sound cutting through his already strained mind.
"There's no way out…" Zami whispered to himself, his cold, silver eyes scanning the encroaching horde. He flexed his hands, blood dripping from his fingers, wounds still fresh from his battle with the Silent Agony. His body was battered, but his resolve remained unshaken.
He had no choice but to fight.
The souls lunged, their forms distorting into clawed hands and writhing tendrils. Zami darted forward, his katana cutting through the air in a whirlwind of motion. He used *Multiple Slash*, his strikes so fast they left afterimages, carving through the phantoms in waves. But for every soul he destroyed, two more seemed to rise in its place, their cries of torment growing louder.
"They just keep coming," Zami muttered, stepping back as he adjusted his stance. His mind raced, piecing together a strategy.
He launched into a *Wild Cat Flow*, disrupting their formation with swift movements that created gaps in their ranks. He followed with *Hawk Drop*, his devastating kick smashing one of the larger souls into a pillar, causing it to crumble. Yet, the collapsing debris did little to stop the rest.
One of the masses of agony surged toward him, a formless blob of shadowy tendrils and anguished faces. Zami planted his feet firmly and unleashed *Razor Sharp Hands*, his strikes ripping through the creature's core. It let out a piercing wail before disintegrating, but the effort left Zami's hands trembling, his knuckles raw and bleeding.
"No end to them…" he thought grimly.
Another wave approached, forcing Zami to retreat further into the chamber. His back pressed against a wall, leaving him no room to maneuver. He gritted his teeth and summoned his strength, combining techniques to hold his ground. *Blade Bind* deflected the clawed strikes of several souls, while *Pierce* sent shockwaves rippling through their ranks, creating a temporary reprieve.
But it wasn't enough.
The shards in his possession glowed faintly, pulsing as if resonating with the agony surrounding him. Desperation clawed at his mind, but Zami steadied himself, tapping into his training. He had survived worse.
He hurled the Wailing Dread shard into the fray, using its energy to unleash a massive shockwave that disoriented the souls momentarily. He followed with a *Blood Cell Explosion*, igniting his own blood to create fiery strikes with his katana. The blade became an inferno, slicing through the dark forms with terrifying precision.
For a moment, it seemed like he was gaining ground. But then the masses of agony began to adapt. They twisted their forms, hardening their shadowy bodies against his attacks. Souls began merging into larger, more powerful entities, their cries growing louder, more deafening.
Zami switched tactics, using the environment to his advantage. He climbed the shattered pillars, using *Stone Slash* to send chunks of debris crashing into the horde. He leaped between crumbling walls, combining *Arrow Flow* with *Hidden Strike*, his movements a blur as he struck from unexpected angles.
Still, the horde pressed on, unrelenting.
The Bone Monarch shard pulsed in his hand, its power calling to him. Zami hesitated, knowing the toll it would take. But he had no choice. With a roar, he plunged the shard into the ground, sending a wave of energy through the chamber. Bone-like spikes erupted from the floor, impaling dozens of souls, but the effort drained him further.
His vision blurred, his body screaming in protest as he pushed beyond his limits. He combined *Adrenaline Surge* with *Precision Strike*, aiming for the core of the largest soul. The impact shattered it, but the explosion of energy knocked him back, sending him sprawling to the ground.
As he staggered to his feet, the horde surged once more, larger and more menacing than before.
"This isn't a battle…" Zami whispered, his voice barely audible over the cacophony of wails. "It's a war."
He gripped his katana tightly, blood dripping from his hands. His cold, silver eyes burned with determination as he prepared for the next wave. He would fight until he had nothing left. Because that's what he had always done.
And this time would be no different.